PBA’s Diversity Through the Decades 2026 – Day One – Webcast

William J. Phelan, IV is the Litigation Partner for the Philadelphia office of the national domestic relations law firm of Cordell & Cordell, P.C. He advocates in various areas of family law, including, but not limited to, divorce, prenuptial and post-nuptial agreements, child custody and support, equitable distribution, spousal support, alimony, adoptions and termination of parental rights, and domestic violence protection. In addition to being a seasoned trial attorney, he serves as a member of the firm’s Appellate Practice Division, handling his own appeals in Pennsylvania and assisting other attorneys with their appeals to various intermediate and high-level courts. Mr. Phelan is active with the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Family Law Section, Appellate Advocacy Committee, and is currently the Chair of the Disability Services Committee. He was President of the Doris Jonas Freed Matrimonial American Inn of Court (2021-22) and served on its executive board for several years. He is a Council Member of the Brehon Law Society (a legal organization comprised of attorneys and judges of Irish ancestry). He has been selected to: the Irish Legal 100 in 2019 and 2023; the 2022 Appellate Lawyers; Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2022 (for a total of five years); The National Advocates Top 100 List; National Academy of Family Law Attorneys’ Top 10 Under 40 Attorneys; and the 10 Best Family Law Attorneys for Client Satisfaction in Pennsylvania by the American Institute of Family Law Attorneys. Within his firm, Mr. Phelan volunteers as a mentor for other attorneys regarding development of their litigation and appellate skills. He presents and is published frequently on the topics of family law and disability rights. Mr. Phelan is licensed to practice in Pennsylvania, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. District Courts for Eastern Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia. He graduated magna cum laude from The Catholic University of America earning a Bachelor of Arts in Classical Civilizations and then a Master of Arts in Congressional and Presidential Studies (Politics). He earned his Juris Doctor, with a certificate in Law and Public Policy, from The Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law. During law school, Mr. Phelan served as a Senior Editor for The Journal of Contemporary Health Law & Policy. Mr. Phelan attended the American Bar Association’s Family Law Trial Advocacy Institute. He is a proud graduate of La Salle College High School. Mr. Phelan volunteers on the leadership committee for Project Magis, a group of legal and financial services professionals who fundraise for local community support programs.  Previously, he was President of the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities Appeal of Greater Philadelphia (serving on its board from 2016 to 2022).

Brandon Lee Wolff, Esq. represents and counsels individuals and businesses in matters involving business transactions, employment law, commercial litigation, estate litigation, estate administration, estate planning, real estate, bankruptcy, civil rights, disability law, health law, education law, family law and personal injury. Brandon is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Florida and the District of Columbia. Brandon is the Past Treasurer of the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, Past Chair of the New York State Bar Association Young Lawyers Section, Past Chair of the New Jersey State Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, Past President of The Florida Bar Out-of-State Division, Past Secretary of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Young Lawyers Division and Past Governor on The Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division Board of Governors. In addition, Brandon is one of the most recent graduates on the Seton Hall Law Alumni Council and has co-chaired several committees. Brandon is also a co-chair of the Volunteer Lawyers for Justice Generation Now Committee. Brandon served as a law clerk to The Honorable Garry S. Rothstadt in the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division. He also interned with three federal judges, the New Jersey Supreme Court and United States Attorney’s Office. Additionally, he was a Law Clerk at Summit Medical Group and Summit Health Management. Brandon received a Certificate in Healthcare Compliance and graduated cum laude (Top 11%) from Seton Hall Law with a Concentration in Health Law. He was the Editor-in-Chief of the Seton Hall Health Law Outlook, an Articles Editor of the Seton Hall Legislative Journal and a member of the school’s Appellate Advocacy Moot Court Board and Mock Trial Board. He participated in the school’s Impact Litigation Clinic, the Civil Rights & Constitutional Litigation Clinic, and the Southern District of New York’s Representation in Mediation Practicum. Before law school, Brandon was a National McCabe Scholar at Swarthmore College where he received the Deans’ Award for Sustained Contributions to the Swarthmore Community. Brandon was valedictorian of his high school class, founded an anti-violence organization and was recognized as the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards top high school volunteer in Pennsylvania.

Brenda (she/her/ella) is currently the Chief Operating Officer at Community Legal Services of Philadelphia (CLS). As CLS’s first COO, Brenda works closely with the Executive Director, Deputy Director and CFO in furthering important strategic initiatives and operations systems. Brenda also directly manages the IT and human resources (HR) departments which includes handling all personnel and union matters. Part of Brenda’s role around HR systems and operations is to ensure the organization continues to strengthen its long-standing commitment to DEIB by working collaboratively with management and staff on hiring, retention and workplace policies. Prior to being COO Brenda was the Executive Director of the Public Interest Law Center. As Executive Director, Brenda led a team of highly skilled litigators and support staff and handled all organizational matters, including fundraising, strategic initiatives, operations and finance, development and communications and Board relations. Brenda was the second woman and the first woman of color to lead the organization. Previous to her Executive Director role, Brenda was at CLS. Joining the organization initially in 2008 as a lateral attorney hire, she was a supervising attorney for many years practicing in the then Aging and Disabilities Unit. Brenda’s law practice included representing low-income seniors in access to long-term care, Medicare appeals and nursing home eviction and quality of care cases. Brenda also represented adults and children in SSI disability cases. In 2015 Brenda was promoted to Deputy Director of Operations; and later added the role of Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer where she helped the organization build its DEIB framework around hiring and workplace culture. Brenda has been a frequent trainer and speaker at both national and local conferences, webinars and bar association programs. Brenda is actively involved in the Philadelphia legal community. She is a current member of the Philadelphia Bar Association, where she was the 2019 Chair of the Public Interest Section, 2022 Diversity Chair, and member of the Chancellor’s Diversity Advisory Panel. Brenda was the 2021 recipient of the Justice Sonia Sotomayor Diversity Award, given annually by the Philadelphia Bar Association for promoting diversity in the legal profession. She is also a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, the Minority Bar Committee of the PA Bar Association, and Board Member of the Hispanic Bar Association of Pennsylvania. As for other Board service, Brenda is immediate past-Chair of the Board of Directors of Pan American Academy Charter School, a K-8 dual language program school located in North Philadelphia that serves predominantly low-income Latino youth. Brenda currently serves on the Board of Directors of Justice at Work. In Spring 2022 Brenda was an adjunct professor at University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. Brenda’s other awards include the 2021 La Justicia Award from The Hispanic Bar Association of Pennsylvania, recipient of the City & State 100 Nonprofit Leader recognition in 2022, the Emerging Latino Lawyers Leader Award for Non-Profit Sector given by Al Día in 2018, and the “Unsung Hero” Award given by The Legal Intelligencer in 2010. Brenda is originally from Nicaragua and is a native Spanish speaker. Her family came to the U.S. under political asylum and she grew up in Los Angeles where she completed her undergraduate studies at Mt. St. Mary’s College, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science, cum laude. Brenda graduated from Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law. Brenda is licensed to practice in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Ms. Farney is a founding partner of TRIQUETRA LAW ®, an award-winning plaintiff’s law firm in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, focusing exclusively on employment law, civil rights, and appeals. Her employment practice concentrates on discrimination, retaliation and harassment cases, ADA, wrongful termination, separation and severance agreements, unemployment compensation, and family and medical leave. She represents both public and private employees in all phases of litigation, administrative processes, alternative dispute resolution and appeal. She primarily practices in the Eastern and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania and is admitted in the Third Circuit and the U.S Supreme Court. Ms. Farney is a former chair of the Lancaster Bar Association’s labor and employment law section and the LBA Diversity Committee. She is the current chair of the LBA Nominating Committee. At the state level she serves as Vice-Chair of the PBA Disability Services Committee and as a Women in the Profession Executive Council Member. She has been selected as a Super Lawyer for Plaintiff Employment Litigation since 2016. Ms. Farney graduated cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School in 1990. She started her legal career as a legal aid lawyer in Minnesota, before moving to Pennsylvania in 1998 and working in multiple roles for the PA Coalition Against Domestic Violence. She identifies as an individual with a chronic mental health condition, depression, and shares this diagnosis in the hopes of destigmatizing mental health conditions in the profession. She and her husband, Ed, are die-hard Pittsburgh Pirates fans. She proudly supports her law partner, Sharon López, the 123d President of the PBA

Autumn L. Johnson is the Chief Public Defender in Mercer County, Pennsylvania. Ms. Johnson began her legal career in 2007 as a staff attorney with Northwestern Legal Services, where she practiced primarily poverty law. She has been employed with the Public Defender Office since 2013.She currently serves as President of the Mercer County Bar Association, and she is also a board member of the Public Defender Association of Pennsylvania. She is active on several community boards, often serving in leadership roles. In 2023, she was appointed as a Hearing Committee Member of The Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.In 2024, she was appointed to the Pennsylvania Indigent Defense Advisory Committee and is the Co-Chair of the Professional and Services Standards Subcommittee. Ms. Johnson received her B.S. from Slippery Rock University in 2002 and her J.D. from the Widener Commonwealth School of Law in 2006.

Dr. Tevis Bryant is currently the Director of Human Resources & Institutional Diversity at the Pennsylvania Bar Association. Previously he worked for the Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network, supporting the member organizations with services such as diversity training, education, and consulting. Prior to his time in legal field, Dr. Bryant spent the previous decade in higher education in a variety of roles including Vice President of Student Affairs, Chief Diversity Officer, and Assistant Dean of Institutional Diversity. In addition to these administrative roles, he also taught a variety of courses as a part-time faculty member. Courses he enjoyed teaching the most were: History of National Pandemics, Digital Presentations, Family Counseling, and Introduction into Psychology. Being a faculty member encouraged him to continually write so that he can contribute to the academic community, while using literature to advocate for the most vulnerable and often targeted communities. Dr. Bryant published his doctoral dissertation that focuses on the racism that Black gay college students experience while attempting to date at predominantly white institutions (PWIs). This highlights the gaps in support that are absent from college campuses, and the need to support this community. He also recently wrote a book chapter from a text on professionals with multiracial identities in education. His chapter is titled, “As a kid, feeling too black for the white folk”, and it discusses the dichotomy of being multiracial and being considered “too white” by one community and then “too black” by another. In addition to his research and diversity work, Dr. Bryant works at Milton Hershey School as the head Middle Division Track & Field Coach. He trains sprinters, hurdlers, and relay teams. He also serves as an M.O.L.D. (Mentoring Our Leaders Development) mentor to four Milton Hershey High School Students. He is a big advocate of access and pipeline programs, being a beneficiary of similar programs he can attest to the impact these experiences have on young people from all walks of life.

Brendan Bertig works as the Staff Attorney for the Pennsylvania Commission for Fairness & Justice, where he researches legal questions for, tracks legislation related to, and drafts reports on various Commission initiatives. A member of the LGBTQ community, Brendan is dedicated to furthering the Commission’s goal of eliminating bias in the Pennsylvania justice system. Before joining the Commission as a staff member, Brendan interned for a number of governmental and non-profit organizations in law school. After clerking for the Allegheny County Public Defender’s Office his 1L summer, he completed an externship with Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services in the fall of his 2L year. That spring, he clerked for United States Senator Dick Durbin in Washington D.C., drafting legislation and preparing memoranda for the Senator’s Judiciary Committee staff. After his time in D.C., Brendan returned to Pittsburgh to clerk with JFCS Immigration Legal Services as an Allegheny County Bar Foundation Summer Fellow. He also volunteered for Reed Smith’s Name Change Pro Bono Project during his 3L year, assisting indigent transgender individuals in Allegheny County as they navigated the name change process. Brendan graduated cum laude from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 2020. At Pitt, Brendan received CALI Awards in Legal Writing and Environmental Justice Law Seminar. He also served as a Pitt Law Ambassador and member of the school’s Moot Court Board. Prior to law school, Brendan attended Duquesne University. He graduated summa cum laude in 2017 with a B.A. in Political Science and received the Top Student Award for the school’s Law & Politics concentration. In his free time, Brendan enjoys hiking, reading, and attending concerts.

Tyesha C. Miley brings more than two decades of litigation and regulatory experience to her practice. She has represented public agencies, insurers, and private clients in matters involving complex litigation, risk management, and regulatory compliance. Her career includes extensive trial and appellate work, along with significant experience managing high-exposure cases and developing operational efficiencies for legal departments. Tyesha previously served as counsel for major public entities and insurers, where she defended tort, contractual, and insurance claims, achieving impactful results on behalf of her clients, realizing substantial cost savings and leading the implementation of streamlined litigation systems. She also operated her own law firm, where she handled tort, real estate, and estate planning matters. Early in her career, she served as an Assistant District Attorney, gaining significant courtroom experience prosecuting a high volume of criminal cases. Active in the legal community, Tyesha has held leadership roles within the Pennsylvania Bar Association, including service as an At-Large Governor on the Board of Governors and Chair of the Minority Bar Committee. Additionally, Tyesha is an active member of the National Bar Association, where she has served in multiple leadership positions. She is a graduate of Fordham University School of Law, J.D., and The City College of New York, B.A. She is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania and before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of PA and U.S. Supreme Court.

Mr. Yoon is Chief Staff Attorney-Legal of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania. Previously, he served as Administrative Assistant to President Judge Correale F. Stevens, a law clerk to the Honorable John T.J. Kelly, Jr., and chief law clerk to the Honorable James J. Fitzgerald, III, in the Superior Court, as well as law clerk to Justice Fitzgerald in the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. He is a 2004 graduate of the Washington and Lee University School of Law and a 2000 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. He is based in Philadelphia, and is an active member of the Philadelphia and Pennsylvania Bar Associations, having served on the PBA Board of Governors as Minority At-Large Governor and as Chair of the PBA’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Team, as a current Philadelphia Bar Association delegate to the PBA House of Delegates, and as an active member of the Law-Related Education, Appellate Advocacy, and Minority Bar Committees. He currently serves as co-chair of the Minority Bar Committee and as vice-chair of the Law-Related Education Committee.

For more than 18 years, Ms. Thompson of the Law Office of Sandra Thompson, LLC has worked to better the lives of her clients. She has worked in various aspects of the law as a case manager in a children’s group home, a therapeutic support worker, a probation officer and as an attorney in private practice. Ms. Thompson served York County, PA as an assistant district attorney and an assistant public defender. She knows the ins and outs of the district attorney’s office, such as how they prepare for their cases and how they tackle cases in court. Ms. Thompson can represent your interests in the Pennsylvania and federal courts. Sandra is admitted to the PA Supreme Court, the Middle, and Eastern Districts of the United States District Courts, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court.

Chi-Ser Tran (she/her) is a Supervising Attorney in the SSI Unit and Language Access Project at Community Legal Services. Her practice focuses on representing adults and children with disabilities who face issues attaining and maintaining Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. She also leads CLS’s language access advocacy and focuses on improving access to legal services, courts, and government agencies for individuals with limited English proficiency. Ms. Tran is a past president and a board member of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Pennsylvania (APABA-PA). She is also a board member of SEAMAAC, an organization that supports and serves immigrants, refugees, and other marginalized communities in Philadelphia. Ms. Tran has received several awards and recognitions, including a Philadelphia City Council resolution recognizing her as an “Emerging Leader,” City & State PA’s Law Power 100 and AAPI 100 lists, and the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Bar Star award. She has published numerous articles and reports on topics including improving access to SSI for individuals with disabilities and strengthening language access. Ms. Tran earned her JD from the Temple University Beasley School of Law in 2016. She earned her BA from New York University in 2009, where she majored in Asian/Pacific/American Studies.

Ms. Bates is a staff attorney at the Community Justice Project, where she is the Systematic Litigator for the Northeastern Region of Pennsylvania. She began her tenure at CJP as a Martin Luther King Jr. Fellow. She focuses on housing, employment work and language access rights, specifically in schools, housing, and law enforcement. She earned her B.A. from Lincoln University of Pennsylvania and her J.D. from Widener University Delaware Law School.

Kristine L. Calalang has dedicated her law practice to family law matters since 2004. She provides her clients with strong advocacy, compassion, and empathy. Ms. Calalang is passionate about serving in leadership positions to help elevate the legal profession, promote fellowship in the legal community, and support philanthropic endeavors. She has strong leadership roles in the Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA), serving as a Zone 1 member of the House of Delegates, Co-Chair of the Legal Academics Committee, and the Diversity Liaison and Co-Chair of the Diversity Task Force of the Family Law Section. Additionally, Ms. Calalang is the Diversity Liaison for the PBA Minority Bar Committee and the Co-Chair of the Diversity Committee of the Women in the Profession Commission. She is also in leadership in the Philadelphia Bar Association, currently serving as the Vice Chancellor and having served as a Member of the Board of Governors and 2022 Board Chair, Co-Chair of the Women in the Profession Committee, and Co-Chair of the Solo and Small Firm Management Committee. Ms. Calalang also served as the 2019 Chair of the Family Law Section and continues to serve as a member of the Section’s Executive Committee, Co-Chair of the Custody Committee, Co-Chair of the Diversity Committee, and founding member of the Diversity Inclusion Scholarship Committee. Ms. Calalang further serves as a member of the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Judicial Selection and Retention Commission and is an active member of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law’s alumni boards. She often plans and presents programs for the PBA, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia Bar Association, and other legal groups.

Samuel G. Encarnacion is the First Assistant Public Defender of Lancaster County. He has a long-standing career with the Lancaster County Public Defender’s Office, representing clients in criminal cases. Bilingual in English and Spanish, he is originally from the Dominican Republic, grew up in Puerto Rico,and moved to Texas in 1980. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin and obtained his J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law at Austin. He was also a partner with Spahn & Encarnacion and represented injured plaintiffs with Haggerty & Silverman. In addition to his legal practice, he has actively participated in various legal committees, including the Pennsylvania Bar Association Minority Bar Committee. He served as an at-large minority governor on the PBA Board of Governors. Furthermore, Sam chaired the PBA Insurance Fund and Trust for and for its tenure as Chair received the PBA Special Achievement Award. He was also a member of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania Committee on Rules of Evidence and served as its chair. Recently, he was appointed as co-vice chair of the newly formed Technology Committee.

Jada S. Greenhowe joined the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (“PHFA”) as Assistant Counsel in 2014. In her role as Assistant Counsel, Jada provides legal advice regarding an array of topics such as bankruptcy, credit reporting and third-party vendor management and oversight. She counsels PHFA’s secondary mortgage program, the Homeowner’s Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program, and represents the Agency in civil litigation matters including Actions to Quiet Title and Commonwealth Court appeals. She oversees federal and state regulatory compliance pertaining to the mortgage servicing industry, such as Act 91 (Homeowner’s Emergency Assistance Act), Act 6 (the Loan Interest and Protection Law) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act for PHFA’s Single Family mortgage program. In addition, she handles multi-party transactional real estate closings involving investor partnerships and Low-Income Housing Tax Credits in connection with PHFA’s Multifamily program. In 2013, Ms. Greenhowe obtained her Juris Doctor from the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Law. She earned a B.A. in Communication Rhetoric from the University of Pittsburgh in 2009. Ms. Greenhowe is admitted to practice in the Western, Middle and Eastern District Courts of Pennsylvania. In addition, she is a member of the American Bar Association, the Dauphin County Bar Association and the Pennsylvania Bar Association where she is a member of the PBA House of Delegates and where she also serves as co- Chair of the Civil and Equal Rights Committee (CERC), and is the co-Chair of CERC’s CLE Subcommittee, as well as its Young Lawyer’s Division (“YLD”) Liaison. In addition, she serves as the At-Large Chair to Diversity for the YLD, is co-Vice Chair of the In-House Counsel Committee and is the YLD Liaison to the Environmental and Energy Law Section. In 2019, Jada was selected as a member of the 2019-2020 class of the PBA’s Bar Leadership Institute.  She is also the 2021 recipient of the Minority Bar Committee’s (“MBC”) Rising Star award and is the current Chair of the MBC Houston’s Rising Star Award Committee.

Ms. White is currently Ethics Counsel to the Pennsylvania Bar Association. As Ethics Counsel, Ms. White responds to Ethics Hotline inquiries from PBA members who have questions concerning the impact of the provisions of the Pennsylvania Rules of Professional Conduct upon their own prospective conduct. Ms. White also assists the PBA’s Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Committee, which issues written ethics opinions and reviews and recommends proposals for changes to the Pennsylvania Rules of Professional Conduct. In addition to staffing the Ethics Committee, Ms. White is the staff liaison to the PBA Civility in the Profession Committee. She also serves as the Associate Editor of the Pennsylvania Ethics Handbook, a useful guide to the professional responsibility obligations of practicing Pennsylvania lawyers. Prior to joining the PBA, Ms. White served as Assistant Counsel for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission, practiced for several years in the private sector, and was a staff attorney in the solicitor’s office for a local municipality. Ms. White received her B.A. from Franklin & Marshall College and her J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law.

Jennifer Ellis is an attorney licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and the principal of Jennifer Ellis, JD, LLC, a law practice management and technology consulting firm. Her legal practice focuses on ethics, and her consulting work assists lawyers and legal organizations with technology selection, implementation, and risk management, including cybersecurity and the practical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice.
Jennifer has extensive experience in legal education and professional development and has worked closely with bar associations and continuing legal education providers on the development and presentation of programs for lawyers at all stages of practice. She regularly speaks and writes on legal ethics, law practice management, and emerging technology issues, with an emphasis on helping lawyers evaluate new tools realistically and responsibly. Her work emphasizes clarity, accuracy, and ethical judgment, particularly where law and technology intersect. Find Jennifer online at jlellis.net.